Donna Sue Berry: St Monica, Please Pray for Me

On this Memorial of St. Monica, we are blessed to introduce Donna Sue Berry, Catholic poet and author, who has started publishing her poems on-line, is working on the book “Catholic Poems from the Heart of a Red Dirt Oklahoma Girl,” and has recently had her full story featured in the on-line “Regina Magazine.” Donna Sue grew up Catholic and, as a child, even thought she might want to join the convent (she has the pictures to prove it). She began writing romantic poems in junior high school…and, well, she never became a Sister or a Nun…but God had more plans for her. After some difficult times in her life, she began writing again. This time her poetry flows from being in love with Christ. Her poems are straightforward and direct and give voice, not just to the heart of a “red dirt Oklahoma girl,” but also to her great love for the Catholic faith. So, without further ado, today we feature something she has written especially for us. Please welcome Donna to our site by giving her some feedback in the combox. And, if she has moved your heart, please be sure to say so.

SAINT MONICA, PLEASE PRAY FOR ME

My tears were falling once again
As I bowed my head to pray.
It wasn’t for the first time that
I ran to church today.

In the coolness of the chapel,
I sank down to my knees,
Where pain and disappointment seemed
To all but smother me.

My husband and my son were lost,
My life was torn apart.
I fell before the Lord my God,
And prayed with all my heart.

I looked up to see some relics,
On the wall just left of me.
When one caught my attention,
I moved closer, then, to see.

It was Monica of Hippo,
Wife, mother, and so saintly.
I knew her name, but not much else;
Her story only faintly.

Her husband and her son had been
Scoundrels at their best.
Her constant prayer and fasting,
Had given her no rest.

But in the end, God triumphed,
Her ceaseless prayers were heard,
Such miraculous conversions,
The two of them incurred.

Augustine soon became a saint,
Her husband too was saved.
With trust in God I knelt back down,
And promised not to cave.

Saint Monica, please hear my prayer,
My family’s gone astray,
You once said “Nothing’s far from God.”
And so I ask you pray.

Please help their souls, and bring me peace,
Pray heaven be their end.
And as for me, I will prevail,
To be your closest friend.

With that all prayed, I left the church,
My faith in God renewed.
My heart and soul much lighter with
The grace of God imbued.

Donna Sue Berry
August 6, 2013
Written for the Memorial of Saint Monica, August 27

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Liz Estler

Liz holds a Master of Arts in Ministry Degree (St. John's Seminary, Brighton, Massachusetts), Graduate Certificate in Spiritual Theology (Avila Institute for Spiritual Formation), Liturgy Certificate (Boston Archdiocese), and a BS degree in Biology and Spanish (Nebraska Wesleyan University - Lincoln). She has served as hospital chaplain associate, sacristan, translator and in other parish ministries. She was a regular columnist for a military newspaper in Europe and has been published in a professional journal. She once waded in the Trevi Fountain!